waterfall light

okay, so I'm trying to source some basalt columns, but it's not an overnight thing.

So in the meantime I'm making some artificial ones.

I will be making a dished basalt pillar to act as a tier, but I want it to be lit up from inside the water. I was thinking of casting a paver LED light into the concrete, but not sure that's the best solution.

This is just for my own personal fountain, I'm really just experimenting at this point.

Any tips?

Attached is the general idea of what I'm making. The column with water running through it will be lit with some sort of LED rope lighting from inside the water line.

You could drill a wide hole from the pillar back into the water bowl. Seal the water side with a piece of glass or plexi (siliconed in place). Install a small LED fixture in the hole on the dry side to shine through the glass into the water. That will keep the fixture clean and dry. Add glass marbles to the bowl to disperse the light.

You could drill a wide hole from the pillar back into the water bowl. Seal the water side with a piece of glass or plexi (siliconed in place). Install a small LED fixture in the hole on the dry side to shine through the glass into the water. That will keep the fixture clean and dry. Add glass marbles to the bowl to disperse the light.

I am currently testing some very small LED lights fram Garden Light that have good color, and are ip rated for continuous submersion in water features. I only have 9 months on them, and only have 4 out there, and two of the four did fail within the first 2 weeks. however, the 2 originals left and the 2 free replacements from the manu are still burning now. they put out about what I would expect from a 15 watt halogen at 11 volts, are very floody, and reasonably priced. They are about 1 1/4" square and about 3/4" deep, and come in brass or black. They feel and look like a solid chunk of metal with an LED mounted on it and then covered in epoxy.

In this application, fiber optics is the way to go. More expensive for sure, but in the long run it will perform better. If you are going to use a powered fixture in that application be sure that it is properly listed and rated for under water applications! (anything less than the best underwater fixtures will eventually leak)